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Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Surf Stuff/Pre-preg/Big Chad/New Boards

Surf Stuff: Better be ready to eat sand. The big sand bar is still out there and with the relatively flat tides we've been experiencing, there isn't a session that doesn't involve a gnarly drop followed by a "do I really want to be here" moment of reflection. It's shallow, fast and top to bottom out there. Everybody's talking about the first big winter storm that will undoubtedly cut some holes in the bank and open up a couple of rideable waves for us. At least that's the plan.

This Photo: Hey, that's me! Now if I can just slow down enough to actually get into the barrel. Photo credit: Momma-K

Photo: I don't know why I always do that with the paddle- going to have to work on my paddle positioning. It looks like I'm getting ready to turn a pizza with that thing. Credit: Momma-K

New Boards:The shaping never stops. For the love of all that's good- get off your ass and order yourself a new board now. Like I told you before, Fall is just a week away and you know that those big northwest ground swells are coming. I just put my order in- so should you!

Pre-preg? Sorry guys- a little explanation is in order here. The shaft that was stuck onto my blade by the Quick Blade guys is super strong and much stiffer than the stock shaft. It's made of pre-preg. cloth. Now what does that mean? Pre-preg means pre-impregnated. In this process the carbon fiber cloth is mechanically saturated with the perfect amount of resin to provide the optimum amount of strength.

The cloth is mechanically manipulated to ensure that the resin penetrates the cloth to the perfect extent- not too little and not too much. And the process ensures that there are no voids in the cloth. This type of cloth has to be stored cold, in large refrigerators and is then set off in big ovens. You can see that using this type of cloth requires way more steps than "ordinary" carbon fiber workups- so it's a little more expensive and way more rigid.

Who's Big Chad?Received a couple of questions about Big Chad and what the Big Chad Report is all about. So here's the answers you lurkers have been looking for: Big Chad is our new star correspondent. He's a contributing editor, hard core stand up surfer, warrior-poet and one hell of a croquet player.

I recruited Big Chad to watch over the site while I was on the road. I needed a guy I could trust to continue posting for me when I was out of internet range. Big Chad is that guy. Not only can he throw together a cool surf report but he is a package deal- he comes with his very own surf photographer, secretary/supermom. Two for the price of one? How could I refuse?

You'll find Big Chad posting up his report every now and then- I'm stoked on them, they bring variety to the site and the photos are sweet. Big Chad's also helped me out with all the stand up paddle surf lessons we've been handling this summer (give us a call 619.213.6622 or john@paddlesurf.net) and now he's even getting requests! Keep checking back for the Big Chad Surf Report- I know I will be!